Canberra Raiders lay down law to ex Canterbury Bulldog Corey Harawira-Naera

Canberra's board gave the all clear before they signed Harawira-Naera to the two-and-a-half-year deal announced on Friday.

He was caught up in the Port Macquarie sex scandal during the pre-season, which led to the Canterbury Bulldogs sacking him.

But he had his NRL registration reinstated after he won his appeal and it's hoped he will join Raiders training on Monday once he's cleared the stringent Project Apollo protocols put in place to deal with the coronavirus pandemic.

The Raiders have a history of taking a strong stance against poor off-field behaviour, sacking a number of stars over the years.

It's why Green Machine coach Ricky Stuart and chief executive Don Furner spoke with Harawira-Naera before signing him.

As The Canberra Times revealed, the Bulldogs agreed to release him after he was unhappy with the support he received from them during the scandal where he had sex with a school girl ahead of their pre-season trial against the Raiders.

"Myself and Don have had a good chat to Corey. He's a good guy," Stuart said.

"He's realised the situation he got himself into.

"Our board have spoken about it - Donny raised it with our board - and we're excited to have him on board now."

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Stuart was unsure exactly when Harawira-Naera would be available for selection, given he's yet to play this season and wasn't training with an NRL club.

The Raiders coach will find out next week whether he'll be ready for their round 12 clash against the North Queensland Cowboys in Townsville.

They're also close to welcoming back England international John Bateman (shoulder), who Harawira-Naera was brought in to replace when the second-rower returns to Wigan next season.

But Harawira-Naera won't be available to play Canterbury when they meet in round 16 - one of the criteria in the Bulldogs agreeing to release him.

"Hopefully he comes into the bubble Monday or Tuesday - once he gets through all the biosecurity and protocols," Stuart said.

"We'll certainly see then where Corey's condition is at and that'll be the telling factor of how soon he can play."

Harawira-Naera's arrival will be timely, given the number of injuries they've suffered in their forward pack.

The 25-year-old can play in the second row, but can also slot into the middle.

"It's given us another number now. He's an international player, he's a class player and I'm really excited to have Corey as a Raider," Stuart said.

"He's going to be great value to the squad this season [and] into the future.

"He's a class back-rower who can play a little bit in the middle.

"John's also not far away so there's two names who come into your selection processes very quickly and add to the squad which is lacking depth at the moment."

NRL ROUND 11

Saturday: Canberra Raiders v South Sydney Rabbitohs at Canberra Stadium, 7.35pm.

Raiders squad: 1. Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, 2. Nick Cotric, 3. Jarrod Croker (c), 4. Jordan Rapana, 5. Semi Valemei, 6. Jack Wighton, 7. George Williams, 8. Josh Papalii, 9. Siliva Havili, 10. Dunamis Lui, 11. Hudson Young, 12. Elliott Whitehead,13. Kai O'Donnell. Interchange: 14. Tom Starling, 15. Joe Tapine, 16. Ryan Sutton, 17. Harley Smith-Shields. Reserves: 18. Sam Williams, 19. Darby Medlyn, 20. Matt Frawley, 21. John Bateman.

Rabbitohs squad: 1. Alex Johnston, 2. Corey Allan, 3. Campbell Graham, 4. Dane Gagai, 5. Jaxson Paulo, 6. Cody Walker, 7. Adam Reynolds, 8. Tevita Tatola, 9. Damien Cook, 10. Thomas Burgess, 11. Jaydn Su'A, 12. Bayley Sironen, 13. Cameron Murray. Interchange: 14. Mark Nicholls, 15. Hame Sele, 16. Patrick Mago, 17. Jack Johns. Reserves: 18. Kurt Dillon, 19. Keaon Koloamatangi, 20. Troy Dargan, 21. Steven Marsters.